


Holtzbert: live from Las Vegas!

by ClillaryHinton



Category: Ghostbusters (2016)
Genre: F/F, Las Vegas, Magic, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-08
Updated: 2018-01-08
Packaged: 2019-03-02 05:22:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,647
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13311399
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ClillaryHinton/pseuds/ClillaryHinton
Summary: The Ghostbusters goes to Vegas, someone gets hypnotised, someone makes a confession, someone has an a-ha moment, Patty has the perfect Vegas dress, because she totally would, amirite?





	Holtzbert: live from Las Vegas!

**Author's Note:**

> Watched Now you see me with the gay boyfriend as my flu-ey entertainment. 8 snotty hours later, this had happened. Not even sure why, my dudes, but apparently I had to do Holtzbert in Vegas, with magicians. Sorry about the lack of graphic smut, I suck. 
> 
> Thanks to my beta LJthebard!

**Holtzbert: live from Las Vegas!**

Erin had never thought she would find herself in Las Vegas, especially not on official ghostbusters business. Her math skills made gambling uninteresting, since she knew exactly how depressing the odds were. Unsurprisingly, this didn't deter Holtzmann, who loved nothing as much as beating the odds. Erin suspected they would have been thrown out for card counting if they weren't the guests of honour and saved the casino from huge losses and great embarrassment.

The management of the Seven Wonders called and begged them to come when a very aggressive ghost threatened to cancel the latest extravaganza starring Harlan Thorne, the golden boy magician, who sold out stadiums with his extra-large-everything magic show of hypnotism and grand scale sleight of hand. Erin was half tempted to let it get cancelled. She wasn't sure why someone should be able to make money from fooling people. But the offered fee was huge and not even Erin said no to a penthouse suite in the tallest building in Vegas plus everything else on the house. Patty developed a new non-fiction obsession and became a fountain of knowledge of magic and famous performers in just a few days.

The ghost turned out to be a furious, vindictive escape artist, equally apt at escaping ghost chippers and chains, which had been his main act back in the day. He hadn't been particularly successful, hence the rage. He'd been a tough nut to crack and the huge fee felt well deserved after a long, messy fight in an auditorium big enough to be hard to overview.

Harlan Thorne come out to thank them and to offer them front row tickets to his show that night, as special guests. Four hours of glitzy trickery really wasn't Erin's idea of a good time, but Patty and Holtzmann were practically bouncing with excitement: Holtzmann because she loved the challenge of figuring out how every trick was done and Patty to see some of the hypnotist/mentalist classics she had read about performed up on stage. Abby said it was about time they all had a good night out, since they had worked a lot lately and Erin couldn't argue with that.

Abby convinced her to go shopping for a new dress. Patty scoffed and said that she already had the perfect outfit for Vegas, what did they take her for, and elected to stay in their suite and take a book and a glass of champagne to a bubble bath. Holtzmann went off on her own.

Erin was going to go for conservative black, but Abby convinced her to go for something more festive, since this was Vegas, after all. They landed on some sort of champagne or nude, with more frills than Erin would normally have gone for, again because this was Vegas. She had to admit that the dress looked fabulous on her, so she gave in. Abby ended up with a dramatic purple number that made her strong colouring pop. She looked so good that Erin gasped when she came out of the fitting room.

Patty did indeed have the perfect dress for Vegas, extra everything. Only Patty could have pulled off that many sequins.

"God, Patty, you look amazing."

"I know, baby."

She smiled a big toothy grin and Erin laughed and hugged her. Maybe they were going to have a good time tonight after all. They drank some more of the free champagne that had magically appeared in their suite while they were out.

They were just starting to wonder where Holtzmann was, when she returned in a bright red tuxedo, paired with an over-the-top ruffled shirt. Erin would have been more surprised if she had worn something predictable. But she couldn't help noticing how good she looked and how much of Holtzmann's creamy skin showed with several buttons left unbuttoned.

They were treated like stars, being placed at a table just in front of the stage, which made Erin a little uncomfortable. She didn't want to risk being involved in the show or having doves fly in her face or anything. But the others were thrilled. The show was extravagant and huge. Even Erin had to admit that Harlan Thorne was very talented. She had no idea how he did most of the things they saw. She also had a feeling he picked his "victims" with care. A cocky stockbroker type danced a very undignified Funky Chicken, to the delight of his business partners and everyone else. A sweet old lady became convinced she was Mike Tyson and tried to challenge a huge body builder to a fight.

And then it happened, just like Erin had feared. He called nine people up on the stage for a group hypnotism session. And for the tenth, he extended his hand to Holtzmann. She pumped her fist in the air and mouthed an excited "yes!".

Erin took her arm and looked in to her eyes.

"Holtz… Are you sure? What if he makes you do something that will make the ghostbusters look bad? It could be bad for business?"

Erin still had the very painful memory of how bad she had made them look when she ended up in the papers for punching that blogger in the nose. She didn't want Holtzmann to have to feel like that. Also, she was of the opinion that only Holtzmann and the rest of the ghostbusters were allowed to make fun of Holtzmann.

"Don't worry, babe, we're far from the weirdest thing in this town. And besides, what happens in Vegas…"

Holtzmann planted a noisy kiss on her cheek and strode up to the stage confidently.

They all lined up. Harlan Thorne did his big spiel and snapped his fingers, leaving them motionless with a dreaming look on their faces. She hated that Holtzmann was the last one and she had to wait for the other nine to perform before it was her turn. Thorne whispered in each person's ear and snapped his fingers again to make them act. Most of it was really funny and sometimes even moving, like when a shy man was made to perform an impromptu opera aria and turned out to have a gorgeous voice.

Was it in Erin's head, or did he talk longer to Holtzmann than to the others? She took a deep breath and tried to relax.

"Now, Jillian… You have something to tell someone, is that right?"

Holtzmann stepped off the stage. To Erin's horror, she got down on her knees in front of her.

"Erin… Light of my existence. Love of my life. You are the only woman in the world for me and I would be lost without you."

The audience laughed, but Erin saw a lot of surprised faces on the giant screens above the stage, shifting between the stage and audience cams. This wasn't like anything Harlan Thorne had made anyone else do. Bu there were audible "awwws" as well. Erin felt like she was frozen solid in her chair. The whole scene felt unreal.

"This is Vegas, you know what to do…"

Thorne snapped his fingers.

Holtzmann looked into her eyes.

"Marry me?"

"Aren't you forgetting something?"

The audience laughed at the confused look on Holtzmann's face, displayed on the giant screen above their heads. She looked around and found the tin foil from the champagne bottle that had waited for them at their table. With a few twists she made a ring out of it and put on Erin's finger.

"That's more like it!"

"What do you say, Erin?"

Thorne threw Holtzmann a perfect red rose and she gave it to her with an elegant flourish. Erin didn't even register that she had taken it until she looked down and saw it in her hands. To her horror, it was now her acutely embarrassed and confused face that was displayed for thousands of people. Spontaneously, she put her hand over the makeshift ring on her finger. She forced herself to smile, like something funny and ridiculous had just happened, even though she was mortified.

Harlan Thorne snapped his fingers.

"And, you're awake!"

Holtzmann looked confused when she noticed she wasn't on stage anymore, but back at their table.

"Thank you for your participation, Jillian. Unfortunately, some people can't be hypnotized, and you seem to be one of them. Thanks for letting me try, though!"

Harlan Thorne winked and made a ”shhh” motion and pointed to Holtzmann behind her back, conspiring with the audience, who seemed to be delighted to be in on the joke.

The camera still on her, Holtzmann smiled, winked and gave the audience an exaggerated bow. She didn't seem to find their raucous laughter suspicious or have any idea she was being lied to.

***

Erin didn't know what to do with the rose.

Patty finally took it from her and stuck it in the empty champagne bottle.

"I can't watch you fiddle with that thing anymore."

She couldn't look at Holtzmann, so she was glad that her fellow ghostbuster was seated slightly in front of her. In a pause in the noise from the show, she tapped her shoulder.

"You really don't… remember anything?"

"Not sure there's much to remember? I’m impossible to hypnotize, apparently.”

She seemed totally immersed in the show.

As soon as the show was over, Erin fled, mumbling that she had to use the bathroom. She spent at least ten minutes hiding in a booth, going over what had happened again and again. She became more and more angry at Harlan Thorne. What kind of person played with people's emotions like that?

As she walked back through the VIP section to find the others, hoping that her face didn’t betray her inner turmoil, she saw him surrounded by glamorous looking people that Erin assumed was his entourage, if magicians had entourages.

"Miss Gilbert! Will you join me for a drink?"

She kind of wanted to tell him to fuck off, but she was curious to know if he would address what had happened. She nodded curtly and walked over.

"It's Doctor Gilbert, actually. And Doctor Yates. And Doctor Jillian Holtzmann. She prefers Holtzmann, not Jillian, by the way."

Erin's voice was cold.

"My apologies, doctor. But indulge me?"

He said something to the people around him, who got up and left the table to just him and Erin. He stretched his hand out and Erin took it, even though she didn't particularly want to.

"Harry. Nice to meet you."

"Harry?"

"Apparently, Harry Thomas isn't a great name for a magician, so my mentor advised me to change it."

Erin couldn't help but smile. She could see how this man could manipulate people with his easy-going, disarming charm.

"Hi Harry. I'm Erin."

"Good to meet you Erin. Sorry for getting your title wrong."

He waved for the waiter, who magically seemed to know what Erin wanted to drink.

"Cheating, not mind reading. I asked what you ordered before."

Erin politely took a sip of her drink and waited.

"I take it you were not a fan of my act?"

"You're very good at what you do. That guy you made dance the funky chicken? That was pretty funny. But what you did to Holtzmann? That seemed a bit cruel. Holtzmann is gay. What if you had made her fake propose to someone she was actually in love with, or someone who would be freaked out? I'm not sure it's fair to play with people's lives like that."

"Did you know that some people aren't receptive to hypnosis and suggestion, Erin?"

"I guess I didn't. I haven't given it much thought. What do you do when that happens during a show?"

"I give the person the opportunity to pretend that they've been hypnotized. To do what they want, as long as it's not violent or offensive. Some of the best moments of my show have happened when someone has elected to play that game with me. Sometimes I simply elect not to hypnotise someone and see what they do with the insight that they’re not."

"What happens if they won't pretend?"

"I'm honest with the audience and tell them that I failed in that particular case. It makes them trust me and make the people pretending believable."

He smiled a big, toothy grin at her. Erin tried to dislike him. But she found that she couldn't.

"Why are you telling me this?"

"I perform as a mentalist too. Read minds. I'm good at it."

Erin had it on the tip of her tongue to say that she didn't believe in that, that she was a scientist. But she wanted to know why they were having this conversation, so she waited.

"When I first met Jillian… Sorry, Doctor Holtzmann, there were certain things I didn't need to be a mentalist to figure out."

He stopped smiling.

"Erin… Doctor Holtzmann wasn't under my control tonight. She was perfectly lucid. Normally, I wouldn't dream of ruining the illusion of my show, but I feel I owe you some honesty, since you saved my hide. I think you and Doctor Holtzmann should talk."

He got up to leave. Before he did, he looked at Erin, completely serious.

"Erin… You're pretty easy to read too."

Erin didn't know for how long she just sat there, staring into thin air. She finished her drink and another one magically appeared. She was so lost in her own thoughts she didn't see Holtzmann coming and didn't notice her until she saw her shiny red boots on the floor in front of her.

"The guys were wondering where you were, so I…"

Erin interrupted her.

”I just talked to Harlan Thorne. Or Harry Thomas, as his real name is."

Erin saw a hint of panic in Holtzmann’s widened eyes.

”He told me some people can’t be hypnotised. But you already knew that.”

Holtzmann sat down heavily on the barstool next to her.

”But I thought… I can’t believe he told you.”

Holtzmann leaned her face in her hands.

”Maybe he thought it was pretty huge and something I deserved to know. ”

Holtzmann just groaned.

”When were you going to tell me about this, Holtz?”

Holtzmann looked up and pulled a face.

”Never? Don’t want to ruin everything, break up the band. And you’re straight, so…"

She looked away and chewed her lower lip.

"Erin, I'm so sorry, it was really stupid. But it just felt good to say it once.”

Erin put a shot of tequila in front of her. Holtzmann gratefully downed it.

”I guess we need to talk now.”

Erin felt for her when she heard the tone of despair in her voice.

”Actually, I have another suggestion.”

***

”Erin?”

She was still half asleep when she answered Holtzmann’s eager voice, too eager for that early in the morning. They didn't get a lot of sleep last night.

”Mmmhmm?”

”Am I Mrs Gilbert now? Or are you Mrs Holtzmann? Or are we The Gilbert-Holtzmanns? Holtzmann-Gilbert doesn't work as well, a bit of a tongue twister if you ask me.”

Erin laughed, woken up by Holtzmann’s enthusiasm and the way her hair tickled her chin when her new wife rolled over and put her head on her shoulder.

”Good point. Guess we should have asked the Dolly Parton imitator at the Chapel of Love before she launched into Jolene.”

”An interesting choice of song for a wedding.”

"It was. I guess we'll have to check the paperwork."

Erin ran her fingers through Holtzmann’s messy post coital mane of blond curls.

”Can it wait… A little?”

Erin kissed her. Las Vegas could keep its light shows, this was real magic.

”Erin… Light of my existence, love of my life… It can certainly wait for _that_.”

Holtzmann kissed her back, deeply.

Some decisions made in Vegas were bad. Really bad. Not this one. Not everything that happened in Vegas should stay there.


End file.
